November 2015

Ashley's friend, Jill is a teacher at Norris School and directs the dramas there. Her dad, Doug, builds all her sets. This past November they put on Beauty and the Beast. Jill and Doug asked me to come and paint the castle walls to look like stone. It was a fun project to work on with Doug. He did an amazing job designing and building this set. And the kids did a great job.

Jayme had a vision to create a playhouse in their basement so I set about helping her build some things to go into it.

A little farmers market stand.

We celebrated Bobbi's birthday with a family bowling night so I made her a cake that looked like a ball and pin. 

Jayme beat Trey and you can see he is thrilled...

But Trey and Jayme had to give Brayn the trophy because he was the over all winner. Good job, Bryan.

Bobbi and Travis went to Omaha and had a 3D ultrasound and then told us that the baby was a girl. Again hind sight is hard but she is such a part of our lives it would be a disservice to leave her out of my blogging. 

Thanksgiving rolled around and the Hamm's came out to have dinner with us. It was a fun time. 

Ashley and Bryan had found her a ukelele at Walnut, IA. She is teaching herself to play.

Hudson loves to discuss Bigfoot with Bryan and anyone who will listen. The boy on the front of this book looks like 15 year old Bryan. Haha

Another component for the play house. A fabric fire.

Jayme was out for a day and sat by the fire building Legos. We love Legos. 

Ashley was working on a quilt she is sticking.

Bobbi was paying attention to the dogs for me. 

I played lots of games of Chutes and Ladders with Boden last year. Never ending game....

We had a "Ghost and Mr. Chicken" movie party and I made some cookies. It was a fun party.

Boden spent hours at my house playing with this vintage Lego castle set that I found on eBay.

A little chair I made for the playhouse.

I took an old little cabinet I found in Ferne's basement when we cleaned her house out and made it into a little stove and oven for Poppy's playhouse.

It was such a fun project.

This sign hangs in Weston, MO. I really want to buy it....

I was driving to work on icy morning and these 4 decided to cause me to come to a sliding halt...fortunately I got stopped and stayed on the road. These pictures may be a little mixed up but they tell our November story. 

Clear Back in October 2015...

I wrote a post that brought us to date in October. Then I went silent. I feel like it is important to go back and at least blog some of the last year.

At least once a week Poppy and Boden got to hang out.

Hudson loves to play NFL on his PS3 and he loved it when Prince Amukamara (then with the NY Giants now with the Jacksonville Jauguars) would be on the screen because he was amazed that we know him. I mentioned to Pilar, Prince's wife, how cute he was about that, when he played the game. So Prince signed a glove that he wears in the game and sent it to Hudson. He was thrilled. So sweet of Prince to think of him.

I made a Lego table out of an old carom board. Works really well. So does the floor, which is where most of them end up...

I found a Sophia The First Princess costume on a great sale and it was worn everywhere for awhile.

Barry gave Bryan a heater for the shop and it worked so well! Nice for him to have heat out there.

Ashley and Jayme found a Dinosaur Cafe and geeked out. Not that I blame them! Dinosaurs are cool.

Halloween rolled around and Snow White and her matching doll we're excited to get to go to Roca Berry Farm.

We had fun time there!

I made Bobbi this shirt from an iron on that she found. It was her announcement to the world that she was expecting. 

Blogging in hind sight is very emotional. Knowing what has happened but not wanting to avoid the past and the excitement and joy that we felt. That was our October.

Kid-Cation (not so Adult vacation)

Friday, July 15 I went down to Rockport, MO to meet up with Andrea and bring the kids back here for several days. 

It was so good to see their faces. Hudson said "It is so good to see your real face!! You are so much more pretty in real life than you are on FaceTime!" Then Boden said "Yeah! And I can kiss the real face!!" What charmers.

We did lots of eating...

Playing...

Painting of cookies and paintings...

Hudson got frustrated with his cookie and painted the whole thing black. Haha

Top left painting is Boden's, top right and bottom left are Hudson's and bottom right is Amiah's.

Swimming...

EZ-GO rides...

Mowing the lawn for me...

Relaxing in the swing...

Going to church and getting a treat at The Commons...

Boden is saying "BWAIN FWEEZE" in his picture

Baking cookies in the toaster oven because my element in my oven decided to go out...

Watching Bigfoot videos on the iPad with Bryan....

They stayed with us from Friday until Tuesday morning when I took them back to their mom. We had a good time together and it was so good to see them. 

Letti Marie Gingery

On April 23, 2016 our granddaughter, Letti Marie Gingery was born already in the arms of Jesus. To watch my brave daughter and son-in-law walk through this is one of the most painful things I have had to experience as a mother. To lose this grandchild is the most heart shattering thing I have ever experienced. Not a day goes by that I don't think of her and what a joy she would have been. 

My sister sent this poem that she wrote, which exactly captures the universe of grief. I believe God's heart is deeply grieved along with us because this isn't how He planned the world to be.

 

In the Valley of Letti Marie

Written by Jenny Poelman 

Oh Universe, go backwards til

That fateful day-- then, Time, stand still

Oh Sky, weep with me in pain

Each teardrop is ten thousand rain

 Oh Ocean, make some space for me,

Or my tears will overflow the sea

Oh Sun, were you not warm and bright?

Why am I cold? Where is your light?

Oh Moon, do you not understand

That nothing shines in this dark land?

 Oh Mountains, I am lost, you know,

In this shadowed valley, far below.

 Oh Trees, bend down, this storm of grief

Is gale force, with no relief.

 Oh Wind blow a song to me

Of what was, and is, and cannot be.

 Oh Life, I don’t want to come this way.

Yet here I stand, on this dark day.

 Oh Path, lead me, urge me on

When hope and strength and will are gone

 Oh God in heaven, carry me

To a resting place I can't yet see.

April 24, the day after Letti was born, we had a huge thunderstorm. When the storm passed Bryan looked up out the window and saw this double rainbow in the sky. He told me to look at it and my first thought that I voiced was, "It's Letti's rainbow!" God's promise she is with Him and safe. At the same time in Lincoln Travis was out and saw the rainbow and went in and got Bobbi. They were just home from the hospital, Bobbi one day after surgery, but Travis knew she needed to see Letti's rainbow, so he got her in the car and drove to where they could see it clearly. People all over, we found out later, were just amazed at the intensity of that rainbow. Our whole family and lots of friends were comforted by Letti's rainbow. 

When my friend, Carmen found out about us seeing the rainbow and that we had all called it Letti's rainbow, she asked her son-in-law, who is a professional photographer in Omaha, to send me this photo that he took of the rainbow.

Friday, April 29 (Jayme's 25 birthday) we had a memorial service out here at our house. Bryan did such a great job of sharing with all of us about Letti and her life and God's comfort in all of this.

 My sister, Jenny, had told me that she suggested to all of our scattered family that they release pink balloons in honor of Letti and as a way of participating in her memorial. She had also asked them to send pictures to Bobbi and Travis. Bobbi liked that idea so we decided to release balloons at the memorial. Then we took it one step further and posted to Facebook that anyone wanting to join in releasing balloons could do so and post their pictures to Facebook and Instagram with the hashtag #lettisrainbow that way everyone could see all the pictures. The church sent out and email to everyone telling them about it and word just spread. Then the dear staff at Lincoln Berean Church donated many many flowers and plants and three of my dear friends, Robin, Kim and Carey came on the very cold Thursday before the memorial and cleaned up my garden and planted those plants in what is now Letti's Garden. 

We did our balloon release at the garden. 

Bobbi and Travis with their balloons.

Releasing, letting go but never forgetting.

This was how the garden looked then.

And this is more recently. I have added some raised boxes and other perrinials, people have given memorial stones and stepping stones to be placed in it. 

It is a peaceful place to sit.

It is hard to believe that almost 2 months have gone by. Sometimes it seems like forever ago and some days if feels like just yesterday. 

We will forever miss this dear little girl who changed our lives forever. 

                                      She is so loved.